Псалом 8

The inscription in the Slavic Bible indicates either the method of musical performance of the psalm on an instrument with holes similar to holes in a winepress, or the time of use of the psalm when squeezing grapes, which work was usually accompanied by songs (Judg. 9:27; Jer. 48:33) From Heb. language - “on a Gathian instrument” (gittit), that is, on an instrument borrowed by the Jews from the Philistine city of Gath, which could resemble a grindstone. The entire inscription can be understood as an indication that the said psalm is performed on a Gathian instrument during the grape harvest, like a folk song. The entire content of the psalm corresponds to the indicated circumstances of the use of the psalm, representing a song of praise to God for His blessings bestowed upon man in a reasonably and beautifully arranged Universe. Since the main subject of the content of the psalm is the image of the greatness of God in nature, which presupposes in the writer of the psalm, David, prolonged observation and contemplation of it, and David could devote himself to this latter only before his appearance in public service, when first persecution from Saul, and then wars and matters of government diverted his attention in another direction, the writing of the said psalm must be attributed to the time of David’s life in his father’s house, after the first anointing of him by Samuel. Then he was still tending flocks, was among nature and could devote himself to contemplating it. Ps.8:2. Lord our God! how majestic is Your name throughout the whole earth! Your glory extends above the heavens! "Earth" and "heaven" can be understood in two ways. Under the earth we mean everything created on the globe, which, by the variety, beauty of its objects, and their intelligent structure, clearly speaks of the greatness of their Creator. The heavens, celestial bodies and all atmospheric and astronomical phenomena speak about the same thing. In patristic literature, under the earth we mean people, under heaven - the world of angels. Both of them praise God. The first understanding is more consistent with the subsequent content of the psalm. Ps.8:3. From the mouths of babes and sucklings You have made praise for the sake of Your enemies, in order to silence the enemy and the avenger. This Divine greatness is so strongly diffused in the world and manifests itself so clearly that it is felt even by the infants who “gave praise to God.” With this ability to feel and see God in the phenomena of the world, they unintentionally and unconsciously, and therefore especially strongly, denounce and reject the judgments of those who deliberately do not notice this greatness, thus being the enemy of God, with their one-sided and erroneous judgments about the structure of the Universe, as if taking revenge on Him for their spiritual blindness. Babies here mean infants. In the book. Prem. 10:21 says that after the Jews crossed the Red Sea, even the mouths of the dumb and the tongues of babies became clear. This indicates not only that the Jews, previously silent and oppressed slaves in Egypt, now boldly speak and sing praises to God, but also that infants took part in the general joy, directly and instinctively feeling the extraordinary and wonderful nature of this event. By babies we can understand not only infants, but also adults, with an unspoiled and pure sense of morality, bringing them closer to children. The fact indicated by the Book of Wisdom brings this passage closer to Matt. 21:15–16, which speaks of Jewish children who sang in the person of Christ, the son of David, that is, the promised Descendant, the Son of God, whom the Pharisees did not want to recognize as such. Thus, the fact that “Wisdom opened the mouth... of infants” after the Jews crossed the Red Sea indicates to the fathers of these children that Wisdom, the power of God, is revealed to children, and not always, therefore, worldly experience and a person’s age serve as indicators of the infallibility of his judgments and actions, which was revealed in the history of the life of Christ, sung by the children as the Son of God, while the fathers of these children, denying His divine dignity, at this time they were making plans for His death. Thus, this fact is a prototype, where in a historical phenomenon the features of a future event in the life of the Messiah are indicated, which is why the said verse of the psalm, as a foreshadowing, is given in Heb. Matthew. Ps.8:4. When I look at Your heavens - the work of Your fingers, at the moon and stars that You have set, Ps.8:5. what is man, that You remember him, and the son of man, that You visit him? The writer of the psalm, amazed at the greatness of God when he examines His creations, reveres Him. This reverence is further strengthened by the consciousness that man has been appointed by God as the head of the world, which shows the extraordinary favor of God. Ps.8:6. You made him a little lower than the Angels: You crowned him with glory and honor; Ps.8:7. You have made him ruler over the works of Your hands; He laid everything under his feet: Ps.8:8. sheep and oxen of all kinds, and also the beasts of the field, Ps.8:9. birds of the air and fish of the sea, everything that passes along the sea paths. Ps.8:10. Lord our God! How majestic is Your name throughout the whole earth! God's exaltation of man is manifested both in the peculiarities of his spiritual nature and in his royal position in the world. In the first case, God “did not make man much... less than... before the Angels,” that is, man, by his spiritual nature, stands slightly lower than the angels and, like them, is capable of spiritual and moral endless development, which lower animals are deprived of. In this ability, which brings a person closer to the higher world of disembodied spirits and to God, his “glory and honor...” before the rest of the world. The expression “not much” in patristic literature is also understood in the sense of indicating the time of fallen man’s state in sin until his restoration through the sufferings of the Messiah, when a person, directly perceiving Christ in himself in the sacrament of the Eucharist, thereby becomes even higher than the angels, since the latter do not partake of the Eucharist. According to the latest understanding, the expression “not much” is equivalent to “for a while,” that is, from the fall of Adam to the suffering and resurrection of the Savior, man stood lower than the angels, and since the time of Christ he has become close to the latter. The royal position of man in the world is revealed in his dominance over all other species of the entire plant and animal kingdoms: both domestic and wild animals, birds of prey, and fish in the seas are subordinate to him. With his intelligence, discoveries and inventions, man not only protected himself from all predatory animals, but also subjugated them to himself, becoming himself an object of fear for them. Examples of such human domination are before everyone’s eyes. Verse 3, which contains a prophecy about the times of the Messiah, contained in the historical fact itself, shows that the said psalm is representatively Messianic. You might be interested in: